In 2015 I decided that my lawn was beyond help. It was more weeds than healthy grass, and so with the help of neighbors and family we killed out the entire lawn. For the next two years we continued to spray weeds as they popped through the dirt. It was a long and annoying process and at times very frustrating, besides being hard work. After things were more in control we laid sod. It was so beautiful and exciting to have instant grass that was actually weed free and healthy.
It wasn’t long before little weeds began to pop up in my beautiful grass. My next door neighbor taught me what fertilizer to use and what to spray on the weeds. Keeping my lawn weed free does take some time each week, but caring for it has become enjoyable. I am much more aware of those little weeds and I am determined to catch them while they are small because I know that they can quickly take over and ruin my lawn.
One thing I have noticed throughout my adult life is that experiences such as caring for my grass, can teach deeper and more meaningful lessons. Just as the Savior Jesus Christ taught with parables, I am one of those who seems to learn easier if I can compare what is being taught to something going on in my life. It’s amazing to me how often that happens if I ask myself this question. What can I learn from this experience?
At the age of seventeen I found myself just like my lawn, full of weeds that were destroying me and taking over my health and beauty. I went through alot of years of not really having the tools or knowledge to completely free myself from those nasty weeds. Of course I made attempts but I always fell short, never reaching that peace and joy that my lawn has brought to me, until…..one day…. I stopped trying to fix things myself and I asked for help.
Through truly letting the Savior Jesus Christ into my life, folliwing Him and trusting that He….. and only He….has the power through His Atonement to cleanse my soul, has the beauty I came into this world with been restored. I now obtain the tools like repentance, forgiveness, patience, faith and charity which help me resist the temptations of Satan and stay on the covenant path. Just like nourishing my lawn with water and fertilizer I have to nourish my soul by partaking on a regular basis of the words and teachings of Jesus Christ and then acting and applying those things into my life.
I am so grateful for this miracle that has taken place. I have never felt such peace and joy as I feel today. I am far from perfect and still deal with the occasional weeds and the natural man in me but I am much healthier spiritually when I nourish my soul by following Jesus Christ.
Look for Parables in your life and learn!
by Tanya Christiansen